Aston Manor Brewery

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Aston Manor Brewery is a brewery and beer bottling company in Aston, Birmingham, England. Its products include Frosty Jack, a cheap, strong white cider. It is managed by Peter Ellis, son of Doug Ellis.[1][2][3][4]

The company was formed in 1981 by four ex-employees of Ansells after Ansells closed its Aston Cross brewery. A new brewery was opened, in the nearby Thimblemill Lane (at 52°29′56″N 1°52′22″W / 52.4989, -1.8728Coordinates: 52°29′56″N 1°52′22″W / 52.4989, -1.8728). In 1984, Herefordshire hop farmer Michael Hancocks, one of the company's suppliers, bought into the business. By 1998 Aston Manor was reporting profits of over £1million, with 70% of its sales being cider. However, because of a slump in the market, strong competition, and an unwillingness on the part of company management to take advantage of a tax loophole, by 2001 profits had fallen to £740,500.[5][2][4]

[edit] Industrial sabotage plot

In 2001, Michael Hancocks, a major shareholder (12% of the shares), whose family owns 44% of Aston Manor, organized a conspiracy to contaminate the cider products of the company's rival, H. P. Bulmer. He recruited a former Aston Manor employee, chemist Richard Gay, to produce a yeast that he planned to introduce into Bulmer's production line, recruited his daughter's partner, Paul Harris, to transport the contaminant, and paid a Bulmer's employee, Russell Jordan, £16,000 to introduce the contaminant. Jordan did not introduce the contaminant, but reported the plot to Bulmers and to the police, and the plot was foiled.[5][6][7][8][9]

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Toasting success: Aston Manor raises a glass to First Quench deal", Birmingham Post, 2003-05-10. 
  2. ^ a b "Cider is rosy as Manor tastes record pounds 1m profit", Birmingham Post, 1998-08-03. 
  3. ^ Ned Halley (2005). The Wordsworth Dictionary of Drink. Wordsworth Editions, 239. ISBN 1840223022. 
  4. ^ a b Philip Williams. "Aston Manor showed rivals it had the bottle", Birmingham Post, 2003-04-17. 
  5. ^ a b "Bad apple brewed cider plot", BBC News, BBC, 2003-08-07. 
  6. ^ "Cider rival's contamination plot", BBC News, BBC, 2003-04-16. 
  7. ^ "Plot to poison Bulmers cider", Beverage Daily, Decision News Media SAS, 2003-04-22. 
  8. ^ "Jailed brewer's appeal dismissed", BBC News, BBC, 2003-12-18. 
  9. ^ Richard Smith. "I AM A CIDER TINKER; Poison plot boss jailed.", Daily Mirror, 2003-08-08. 

[edit] External links

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